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NYCEDC's blog

Today we announced the winner of this year's NYC Next Idea Competition: KisiBox, hailing from Germany, is developing smartphone-managed entry security systems for buildings, apartments, and other spaces. The team, comprising co-founders Bernhard Mehl, Maximilian Schütz, and Carl Pfeiffer, was selected from a highly competitive and diverse pool of more than 220 applicants submitted from 40 different countries. As winner of the Next Idea competition, Kisibox qualifies for $35,000 in prize-money to assist them in launching their innovative business in New York City.

"We have worked very hard on our business model, and we are thrilled to win the NYC Next Idea competition," said Max Schütz, Co-founder at KisiBox. “We are excited to bring KisiBox to the epicenter of the sharing economy, New York City.”

The NYC Next Idea global business competition raises the visibility of New York City as an international center for innovation and entrepreneurship while showcasing talent from some of the top business and engineering schools from around the world. As part of the NYC Next Idea program, the members of the six finalist teams spent the last week visiting New York City and attending informational panels with entrepreneurs from startups in the City such as ShopKeep POS, TaxiTreats, Sandbox Network, and Digital DUMBO, as well as with corporate and immigration lawyers. During their time here, the finalists also toured two of the City-sponsored startup incubators, General Assembly and Varick Street Incubator. Todd Barrish, President of Indicate Media, served as the Competition Pitch Coach, working with each of the teams in the lead-up to the competition to refine their presentations.

Last year, TaxiTreats won the NYC Connect Track of the Next Idea competition. Their winning submission earned them a $17,500 grant, which the company has used to raise $1 million in funding from prominent venture capitalists such as David Tisch and The Richport Group, which is chaired by singer Marc Anthony. With this funding, TaxiTreats recently launched a new product, Vengo, a vending machine that will provide such items as gum, mouthwash and hand sanitizer to restaurant and bar patrons in New York City.